Sibling Similarities and Sharing the Care of Older Parents

Abstract

This study examines the degree to which the sharing of parental care, as indicated by the amount of children participating in caregiving and by equality in caregiving intensity, is associated with similarities among sibling characteristics. A selected sample of 186 parents with at least two children was asked to report on the assistance provided by all their children. Results reveal that in most families the care was shared between children. However, there was a large variation in caregiving intensity. Multivariate regression analyses show that similarities in employment status among children predicted a higher chance that the care was shared and a higher degree of equality in caregiving intensity among siblings. Similarities in partner status and emotional support exchanges with parents were associated with the equality among siblings in caregiving intensity. Results from this study suggest that siblings with similar characteristics and opportunities are more likely to share care (equally).

“Handle with care”: The mediating role of schedule i‐deals in the relationship between supervisors' own caregiving responsibilities and employee outcomes

“…If they met both criteria, we asked whether any of the elderly who needed help were living in the respondents' homes and whether the respondents were providing regular emotional or material help (Criterion 3). Previous eldercare studies have used similar criteria (Tolkacheva, Van Groenou, & Van Tilburg, ). We coded the supervisors as 1 if they met the three criteria, and 0 otherwise.…”

Sibling Relationships in Adulthood: Research Findings and New Frontiers

“…As parents age, most assistance is provided by family members, with adult children contributing substantially (Dilworth‐Anderson, Williams, & Cooper, 1999; Suitor, Gilligan, & Pillemer, 2015; Tolkacheva, van Groenou, de Boer, & van Tilburg, 2011). Studies have shown that caregiving is usually a “family affair” negotiated among multiple adult children, and siblings can be a source of both support and stress to each other during parental caregiving (Bedford, 2005; Matthews, 2002; Tolkacheva, van Groenou, & van Tilburg, 2014; Tonti, 1988). Siblings who have established positive relationships seem to be more supportive of one another when providing care to older parents than siblings who do not (Matthews, 2002).…”

Men as Carers in Long-Term Caring: Doing Gender and Doing Kinship

“…Most studies find that care takes place mainly within the family, and some have analyzed how care contributes to “doing family” (Blackstone, 2014; DeVault, 1991; Hertz, 2006; Nedelcu & Wyss, 2016), and may even describe the obligations of kinship and the cultural models on which they are based; however, these factors are not incorporated in the theoretical framework or as an analytical theme. This is the case of the considerable bibliography on husband carers and marital relations (Bildtgärd & Ӧberg, 2017; Calasanti & Bowen, 2006; Kluczyńska, 2015; Kramer & Lambert, 1999; Milligan & Morbey, 2016; Milne & Hatzidimitriadou, 2003; Ribeiro et al, 2007; Ribeiro & Paúl, 2008; Russell, 2001), and adult sons who care for their parents (Campbell, 2010; Henz, 2009; Horowitz, 1985; Matthews, 1987; Spitze & Logan, 1990; Tolkacheva, Broese van Groenou, & van Tilburg, 2014). Kinship is taken for granted, it is not problematized and is thereby naturalized.…”